National Sun Awareness Week 2006 will be Monday, May 29 to Sunday, June 4.  For the 2006 campaign, the Canadian Dermatology Association will be focusing on sports and fun in the sun. Media and event inquiries can be directed to the program's communication officer, Sue Sherlock, at ssherlock@dermatology.ca or  604.985.9184.

Scheduled Events (to date)
Date		Location		Event
May 16, 2006		Ottawa		Chuck Cadman Memorial Skin Cancer Screening
TBC		Toronto		Blue Jays Baseball Skin Cancer Screening  [last year's statistics]

Highlights of the CDA's 2005 National Sun Awareness Program. The 2005 National Sun Awareness Week campaign, held May 30 - June 5, focused on basal cell carcinoma, the last of the cancers to be covered in the three-year skin cancer series project. The campaign had an outreach of over 17 million Canadians and involved communities across the country.  In addition to media briefings, three news releases were issued: "Common skin cancer seen in people over 50 now appearing in Canadian teens, people in their twenties" [full story] "Young Vancouver doctor shocked by own basal cell skin cancer diagnosis" [full story] "Sun exposure and healthy levels of vitamin D - Canadian Dermatology Association offers recommendations" [full story] Many active events were held across the country.  Of note, a new pilot program for medical students was launched.  To date, nearly 200 first year medical students have been instructed on the early detection of skin cancer, specifically melanoma.  Sun awareness week 2005 received an official recognition with an official proclamation by the Mayor of St John's, Newfoundland. New educational materials were also added to the current compliment of resources.  These included an ABCDE bookmark, a Sun Facts on basal cell carcinoma, and a brochure on squamous cell carcinoma and actinic keratosis.

02/27/2006